Without a well-funded energy strategy, UK faces a dark future

Oliver Inderwildi

It is now commonly accepted that we must both decarbonise our energy sources and realign them to ensure that they come securely from within our own borders. There is a real possibility that the national grid will struggle to meet even today’s level of demand over the next couple of decades as nuclear and coal power stations near the end of their lives. Investment in infrastructure has never been so important.

We need to spend more than £250 billion on energy-related infrastructure over the next decade. Such infrastructure is notoriously long-lived. Without careful investment in a balanced portfolio of low-carbon energy sources now, we could be left with high-carbon-generating power stations for decades to come.